Chefs from Spain will join forces with chefs from Portland in a series of collaboration dinners. Events throughout the festival will showcase Spanish products, purveyors, and specialty equipment to encourage collaboration and mutual enrichment between the two gastronomic cultures.

La Ruta PDX will launch with a festival premiere party followed by a private screening of the Spanish documentary film Soul at the Portland Art Museum co-presented by NW Film Center about Basque Country 3-star Michelin chef Eneko Atxa tackling the complex universe of haute cuisine.

A cocktail hour before the film will offer cava from Suriol and passed tapas from PLAZA DEL TORO chef Michael Kessler. A cheese and dessert reception after the film will feature Soul star Eneko Atxa’s txakolina being poured in Oregon for the first time.

PLAZA DEL TORO and Southeast 2nd Avenue between Taylor and Yamhill transform into an trade show featuring an array of products and equipment from Spanish and local purveyors, culinary demos, and an extensive variety of beverage tastings presented by winemakers, distillers, brewers, and cider makers from Spain and Oregon.

Guests can enjoy product samples, GinTonic competition, Miro Vermut Hour hosted by Pollo Bravo, Carter Cutlery knife raffle, an exhibit of oil paintings by Holly Grosvenor of the Asturias region of Spain, and a reading of Granada, A Pomegranate in the Hand of God at Taylor Railworks by author Steven Nightingale.

The final event of the festival features bites from more than 15 local and Spanish chefs and artisans with extensive beverage tasting from winemakers, brewers, and sidra makers of Spain and Oregon.

Luke Burbank of Live Wire will host a panel on the main stage in Director Park with the traveling Spanish chefs and Kelly Cox from PBS Food’s Original Fare will interview participating festival chefs, artisans, and winemakers.

Live entertainment will be hosted by Pepe Raphael (of Pepe and the Bottles Blondes) with live music and dance from Espacio Flamenco, who will also offer a pop-up Flamenco class for kids who will perform later in the event.

Additional entertainment includes Barcelona street art, face painting, and students from nonprofit My Voice Music will open the live entertainment with an original Spanish song written in collaboration with Pepe Raphael.